The United Nations Information Center (UNIC) said in a press release, a copy of which was made available to IRNA, that the 60 winners were selected from a pool of over 3,600 entrants.
The winners, among them Ph.D. student Pooya Naderi from Iran, have been invited to attend the Many Languages, One World Global Youth Forum at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York.
The event includes an all-expense-paid trip to New York City and the opportunity to speak at the General Assembly of the United Nations. Students will present action plans related to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Many Languages, One World contest challenged college and university students around the globe to write an essay examining global citizenship, cultural understanding and the role that the multilingual ability can have in fostering both.
Entrants submitted essays in one of the six official United Nations languages, which could be neither the student’s first language nor in his/her primary language of instruction. More than 9,000 individuals from 165 countries took part in the initial phase of the contest. The official languages of the United Nations are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
Pooya Naderi was born and raised in the historically significant city of Esfahan, Iran. He traveled to France to pursue a master’s degree, and he is now working on his Ph.D. in France. Naderi speaks four languages – English, French, Persian and some Spanish – and can clearly see the direct influence of multilingualism on his life as an international student.
He interacts and works with people from different nationalities and cultures regularly, and he reports that his linguistic abilities have helped him to better understand the cultures of the people he encounters. Mr. Naderi is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Université de Picardie Jules Verne (UPJV) in Amiens, France.
He is studying mechanical engineering, and specifically, he works on convection in porous media. In the future, he plans to establish his own company and create new work opportunities for young graduates.
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